The Toronto International Film Festival today announced six highly-anticipated films set to premiere in its Gala and Special Presentation programs. These select half-dozen will all be making their World Premieres during the 49th edition of TIFF, running September 5-15.
Among the picks is the animated feature The Wild Robot, featuring an acclaimed ensemble cast led by Oscar winner Lupita Nyong’o as Roz, a robot shipwrecked on an island that must adapt to its new surroundings. The film is written and directed by Chris Sanders (How to Train Your Dragon, Lilo & Stitch), based on the award-winning book by Peter Brown.
The DreamWorks Animation film will be released in theaters on September 27 through Universal Pictures. Read more in our pre-Annecy interview with Sanders here.
The lineup will also include the world premieres of documentary Elton John: Never Too Late, Korean historical actioner Harbin, Stephen King adaptation The Life of Chuck, dark comedy Nightbitch and a coming-of-age film about Indigenous basketball, Rez Ball.
“We know the TIFF audience has been eagerly anticipating what films will be coming to Toronto this September, and today’s announcement is a snapshot of what’s to come this year: a wonderfully wide range of titles that span genres and generations, with discoveries for everyone,” said Anita Lee, Chief Programming Officer, TIFF. “TIFF is renowned for finding and showcasing works from both emerging and established filmmakers from all around the world, and for creating an unmatched groundswell of excitement, often paving the way for awards season, thanks to the hundreds of thousands of industry delegates and public filmgoers that attend each year. As we approach our 50th Festival, we are proud to evolve and expand our offerings to meet the needs of the industry and our audiences while always remaining true to what TIFF stands for — transforming the way people see the world through film.”
TIFF Performer Award: Six-time academy award nominated actress Amy Adams, who stars in the TIFF-premiering Nightbitch and also produced via her Bond Group Entertainment label. Adams is known to animation fans for her starring roles in the live-action/2D movies Enchanted (2007) and its Disney+ sequel/ Disenchanted.
Prior notable credits include Vice, (2018) for which she received nominations from the Golden Globes, SAG Awards, Critics’ Choice Awards, BAFTAs, and Academy Awards; HBO series Sharp Objects, which she also executive produced, and won a Critics’ Choice Award as well as nominations for a Golden Globe, SAG and Emmy. Adams recently wrapped production Taika Waititi’s Klara and the Sun and will next star in At the Sea from Kornel Mundruczó and Kata Wéber. Adams is represented by WME, Linden Entertainment, Narrative, and Sloane, Offer, Weber & Dern.
Norman Jewison Career Achievement Award: Filmmaker David Cronenberg’s reputation as an authentic auteur has been firmly established by his uniquely personal body of work, which includes Shivers, Rabid, Fast Company, The Brood, Scanners, Videodrome, the Fly, Dead Ringers, Naked Lunch, Crash, eXistenz, The Dead Zone, M. Butterfly, Spider, A History of Violence, Eastern Promises, A Dangerous Method, Cosmopolis, Maps to the Stars, Crimes of the Future and The Shrouds. As an actor, Cronenberg has given notable performances in Alias Grace, Disappearance at Clifton Hill, and Star Trek: Discovery.
Cronenberg’s contributions to art and culture has been recognized with appointment as an Officer to the Order of Canada in 2003, a Companion of the Order of Canada in 2014, investiture in France’s Order of Arts and Letters in 1990 and the Légion d’Honneur in 2009.
Additionally, Sandra Oh was named the 2024 TIFF Tribute Awards Honorary Chair. A prolific actor of the screen and the stage, the Ottawa-born artist’s career spans over 30 years. Her animated film credits include the Toronto-set Turning Red (Pixar), Over the Moon (Netflix/Pearl/SPI/Glen Keane Prod.), Raya and the Last Dragon (Disney), Window Horses by Anne Marie Fleming and this year’s The Tiger’s Apprentice (Paramount).
Oh’s live-action credits include Sideways, Double Happiness, Under the Tuscan Sun, The Princess Diaries and For Your Consideration; TV roles include 10 seasons as Dr. Cristina Yang on Grey’s Anatomy (Golden Globe Award/SAG Award/Emmy nominations), The Chair (also executive produced) and four seasons of Killing Eve (also executive produced; Golden Globe Award/SAG Award/Critics Choice Award/Emmy Award nominations), Arli$$ (HBO) and Thorne: Scaredy Cat (U.K.) She currently stars in Quiz Lady (Hulu) and The Sympathizer (HBO). She will next star in Fleming’s Can I Get a Witness.
